Low Point in Turkish-Franco Relations 
Ankara Threatens Suspension of Arms Con-tracts 

The Turkish military leadership have threatened to suspend military relations with Paris, including any arms contracts. 
Grounds for such unexpected harsh measures was a map from the organization Reporters sans frontières which identified the Turkish general staff, alongside the rulers of the Middle East, as an enemy of press freedom.
Reporters sans frontières (RSF) wanted to direct the public’s attention to breaches of press freedom and freedom of opinion by unveiling a giant world map in the Paris Metro station of Saint-Lazare on May 3rd. The map showed the countries with restrictions on press freedom as well as depicting the people personally responsible for such restrictions. 
In the 2-week long display of the map, the RSF pointed out the following:
? In Turkey during 2001, 31 journalists were imprisoned, 20 were attacked and 50 journalists who criticized Turkish security forces were convicted.
? In 2002 three legal cases were brought against the chief editor, Erol Özkoray, of IDEA POLITIKA because he had criticized in an article the Turkish armed forces’ opposition to the EU. 
? The writer Fikret Baskaya was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment for an article he wrote in 1999 in which in criticized the attitude of civilian and military authorities towards the Kurdish question.
? Politically motivated penalties issued by the Turkish Radio and TV Board of Control (RTÜK) have become harsher, e.g. a broadcaster was closed down for 1 year for playing Kurdish music. 
That the Turkish head of the general staff, Hüseyin Kivrikoglu, has been placed alongside rulers such as the Iraqi leader Hussein and the Iranian President Khamenei, is seen in Ankara as being extremely offending and therefore has resulted in such  a heated reaction. (Sources: Milliyet, 08.05.02,Milliyet, 09.05.02, IMK e.V.)

Suspension of Arms Contracts?

The Turkish general staff firstly made a complaint against the RSF. They demanded that the map be removed from the Metro station within a reasonable time.
According to the semi-official news agency Anadolu, Anakara had also instructed a French lawyer to investigate any legal action that could be taken against RSF.
The French military attaché in Ankara was informed that bilateral military relations and arms contracts could be cancelled. The French Ambassador was also summoned to the Foreign Ministry where the Turkish government’s harsh protests were expressed.
State President Sezer severely condemned RSF’s attempt to defame the head of the general staff. He told the press that Turkey had nothing in common with the other countries on the map because Turkey was a democratic country.
He called on the government in Paris to penalize the ini-tiators of the smear campaign.
Anti-French feelings were stirred up later in the media. The majority of commentators considered it insulting that it was theoretically possible to walk across Kivrikoglu’s picture in the Metro station.
The president of the Turkish Press Council commented that the RSF was untrustworthy, promoted contacts with marginal groups and defended terror organizations in the name of press freedom. Only a few, such as deputy head of government Yilmaz, remained distanced and questioned whether Ankara’s reaction was really appropriate. 
The professor of political science, Hasan Köni, warned of potential icy relations between Ankara and Paris as there were a year ago when Paris acknowledged the genocide of the Armenians from 1915 and Anakara had frozen French relations to a minimum in protest against such “historical fabrication”. 

RSF Remove Controversial Map

RSF have removed the controversial map from a Paris Metro station which had triggered a diplomatic crisis be-tween Turkey and France. 
After Turkey had made strong protests to the French government and the French military, and had issued threats against their “cooperation on defense”, the group made a statement to remove the controversial map. The group also stated that Turkey’s reaction to the map revealed that Tur-key “was not ready for EU membership”.
The journalist organization RSF, who portrayed general staff head Kivrikoglu as an enemy of press freedom, claimed that they had had no pressure from the French authorities. Jean - Christophe Menet from RSF, answered our questions over the Internet and said there had been no pressure from the French government. In contrast, Turkish civil servants in Ankara and Paris had made numerous protests against the RSF. The Turkish Foreign Ministry had summoned the French ambassador, Bernard Garcia, to protest against RSF’s actions. Menet stated that it was not possible to apply pressure because the RSF would only react slowly. Menet also pointed out that the RSF was not a French NGO but an international NGO who received much of its funding from the EU. The president was Spanish.  RSF reserved the right to a counter-protest. (Source: Turkish Daily News 11. May 2002)

Numerous Writers Brought Before Courts 

Whether the state of the press in Turkey can be compared with that in Iraq, as the RSF have done, is debatable. However, what is not debatable is the fact that the Turkish press continues to be subjected to many restrictions. 
An indication of this is that last year the Turkish Radio and TV Board of Control (RTÜK) penalized 62 TV and 50 radio stations with  broadcasts being suspended for a total of 3,236 days. In addition, according to figures from the Turkish Press Council, who itself is known to be close to the regime, there are still 15 journalists behind bars be-cause of alleged anti-state articles.
The international writers organization PEN have criticized as excessive the number of court cases against writers whose only offence has been a critical stance towards official state policies.
According to the English language Turkish Daily News, the case shows how “big the gap is between our norms and those of the EU”. To heavily criticize or even offend a political leader is seen in Europe as a right to criticize and freedom of opinion.
In contrast, it is unthinkable to criticize the head of the Turkish general staff out of both cultural and practical considerations. Whoever does such would be dragged straight before a court. (Source: NZZ, 10. May 2002) 

“Interesting” Court Case Against Journalists 

According to a report from a Jurists Commission set up by the Istanbul branch of the Association of Contemporary Journalists, many journalists will soon be brought before the courts for alleged membership of banned organizations. The report has been entitled „”Interesting” Cases of Indicted Journalists.
All the journalists have been named and their cases listed in this publicly available report. The journalists are: Mehmet Kutlular, Hasan Özgün, Memik Horuz, Irfan Aydin, Asiye Zeybek Güzel, Azad Adiyaman, Nureddin Sirin, Kemal Evcimen, Mustafa Benli, Sadik Celik, Filiz Gülkokuer.
The journalist Azad Adiyaman, was arrested on 21st April 2002 along with 2 leading HADEP members during a reception of  HADEP’s youth organization in Mersin. During questioning he was accused by security officials from the Anti-terror Section of “inciting the people during the NEWROZ festivities”. On these grounds Azad Adiyaman was arrested in the presence of his lawyer.
According to a statement by the daily newspaper Yedinci Gündem, their employee Adiyaman was arrested, in an act of retribution, by security forces because he had worked for 3-4 years for the newspaper in Mersin. 
Hasan Özgün was detained on 9th December 1993 in Diyarbakir while working for the daily paper Özgür Gündem. The state security court in Diyarbakir accused him of being a PKK member and convicted him on 17th February 1996 to 12 years and 6 months imprisonment. On 2nd April Özgün was transferred from Diyarbakir to the E-Type prison in Aydin.
During this time he had written to the Ministry of Justice and other authorities requesting a review of his case. To date he has not received a reply. A second case has been brought against him for “offending the state’s armed and security forces”. Diyarbakir’s state prosecutor has called for a prison term of between 4-12 years. Because of this his lawyer has turned to the European Court of Human Rights. (Source: BIA Nachrichtenagentur Istanbul, 08.05.02)

Turkish Human Rights Activists Call for an End to “Death Fasts” 

The Turkish Human Rights Association IHD has called for an end to the “death fasts” by left-wing prisoners in Turkish prisons. To date 50 prisoners have starved themselves to death. The prisoners have been called on to end their protest so as to enable a solution through negotiation. This was stated by the head of the IHD, Hüsnü Öndül, at a recent meeting with the Turkish Justice Minister, Hikmet Sami Türk.
According to the Ministry, a total of 55 prisoners are currently participating in the “death fasts” with 8 more having recently joined in. The hunger strikes, which began in October 2000, are aimed at the alleged isolation of prisoners in the new Turkish high-security prisons. Most of the hunger strikers belong to the Revolutionary Peoples Liberation Party/Front (DHKP-C) which has recently been placed on the EU’s list of terror organizations. The Turkish government have persistently rejected any negotiations. With an ending of the hunger strikes, they intend to hold an “International Prison Symposium” to seek a solution in light of the outcome. (Source: IHD, 9.5.2002)

At Risk of Torture and Ill Treatment 
Members of the Teachers’ Union “Egitim-Sen”

Yusuf Basboga, Ahmet Ökten, A. Kerim
Kochan, Mikail Bülbül, Mahsun Ilen, Faruk Kilic, Nurettin Demir, Zübeyir Avci, Mahmut Kuzu, A. Aziz Yücedag, Lokman Kochan,
Sermin Erbas

The above 12 members of the teachers’ trade union “Egitim-Sen” were arrested by police on May 7th 2002 at 10.00pm in the town of Kiziltepe, province of Mardin, because they had been active in support of school tuition in the Kurdish language. The men and women have been de-tained in the Anti-terror Section of Mardin’s Central Police Station where they are at risk of ill treatment or torture.
Hundreds of people have been arrested since November 2001 after having handed in petitions to schools and universities requesting Kurdish lessons and tuition in Kurdish. Although recent constitutional amendments provide the right to make requests to the authorities, many signatories to the petitions have been arrested and detained by police and Turkish gendarmerie. Some of those detained have been tortured and ill treated and others have been expelled from schools and universities. 
According to the information available, a woman from Kiziltepe was arrested on May 5th 2002 and held in Mardin’s Central Police Station for 3 days. She was allegedly tortured by 5 police officers. Mardin’s state prosecutor has initiated an investigation into the allegations of torture.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION 
While there are only a few reports of torture in Turkish prisons, torture in police stations appears to be common practice. Torture is used to obtain “confessions” or information on illegal organizations, to force people to become police informers or as punishment for suspected support of a banned organization. Amongst the most frequent methods of torture is to strip the prisoner, blindfold him, to spray him with ice-cold high-pressure water, to be hung up with the arms bound behind the back, to use electric shocks, to be beaten on the soles of the feet, to make death threats or sexual abuse. 

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Write, FAX or Airmail stating:
? Expressing your concern for the safety of the 12 members of the trade union “Eğitim-Sen” being held in Mardin’s Central Police Station;
? Requesting guarantees that they will not be tor-tured or mistreated;
? Demanding that they have immediate access to lawyers and that they be brought directly before a judge and either charged with a recognized of-fence or released immediately.  
? Reminding the Turkish government of its responsibilities under the European Convention on Human Rights ("No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. ").

Send to:
Mr. Rüstü Kazim Yücelen, Icisleri Bakanligi, 06644 An-kara, Turkey (Interior Minister)
Telefax: (00 90) 312 418 1795

Mr. Orhan Kaya, Emniyet Müdürü, Mardin Emniyet Müdürlügü, Mardin, TURKEY
(Mardin’s Chief of Police)
Telefax: (00 90) 482 213 56 40

Copies to:
Mr. Nejat Arseven, Prime Ministers Office, Basbakanlik, 06573 Ankara, TURKEY (Minister for Human Rights Issues)
Telefax: (00 90) 312 417 0476

Turkish Police Apprehend 248 Illegal Immi-grants 

Turkish police have arrested 248 refugees in the country’s south. According to the news agency Anadolu, they had attempted to illegally cross the border to Greece. Of the refugees apprehended in the Bay of Bogsak, 160 were Turkish citizens. Turkey is one of the most important transit countries for illegal immigrants coming to Europe from Asia and the Middle east. (Source: afp 13.5.2202)

Reporters sans frontières:
31 Journalists Killed in 2001 

According to the organization Reporters sans frontières, at least 31 journalists were killed while carrying out their profession in 2001. It was also said at the “International Day of Press Freedom” in Berlin (May 3rd), that a further 27 cases were being investigated as to whether the deaths of the reporters involved were connected with their research or publications. Since the beginning of 2002, eight reporters have already been killed and 166 have been imprisoned. Nepal is the “worldwide biggest prison for representatives of the media” with 27 journalists being held behind bars.
There are still serious restrictions on press freedom in many countries. One third of the world’s population are denied the right to freely express their opinion or to have unhindered access to information. In China, Cuba, Laos, North Korea and Vietnam the ruling parties dictate what may be printed, distributed or placed on the Internet.
Even in non-communist countries such as Syria, Iraq, Burma, Tunesien or Saudi-Arabia, governments control information. Following the attacks of September 11th, access to information in Canada and the USA has been restricted in the name of “the war against terror”. According to the head of the European Journalists Federation (EJF), Gustl Glattfelder, international concerns are becoming an ever growing threat to diversity within the media.
Glattfelder said that in Italy, where prime minister Silvio Berlusconi does not want to let go of his private media empire, an “explosive mixture” was in the making. 
According to Reporters sans frontières, there had also been positive developments. The journalists Syrer Nizar Nayyuf and San San Nweh from Burma were released after spending years in prison.. The fall of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan was also an indication of freedom of the press. (Source: Reporters sans frontières) 

Iranian Clergy Outraged by Book on Musi-cians 

A book about musicians has caused outrage amongst the Shiite clergy in Iran. The government publication "Iran" had been initially closed down by the judiciary because they had published an article on a book by Tuka Maleki. However, according to the official news agency IRNA, the head of the judiciary, Ayatollah Mahmud Haschemi Scharudi, later revoked the closure. In the article on the book “Women in Iranian Music”, the reviewer Banafscheh Samgis had written that even the prophet Mohammed liked to listen to women making music. The judiciary consider the book and the review to be insulting to Islamic principles and to the prophets. A court in Tehran issued warrants for the arrest of the books author, Maleki, the journalist Samgis and the book’s publisher Massud Kasari. They were ,however, allowed to go home after questioning. Further questioning is expected. In the holy city of Qom many clergy clergy members had protested against the book and particularly against the review. They said that a publication funded with public money should not be allowed to publish such an offending article. They called on the authorities to act immediately against this “treasonable and blasphemous offence”. (Source: dpa, 5th .May 2002)

Iranian Judiciary Ban Two Reform-oriented Daily Newspapers 

The Iranian judiciary have banned the reform-oriented newspaper "Iran". This was revealed by the state Iranian news agency IRNA. According to the publishers, around 100 hundred complaints had been leveled at the publication which was founded 9 years ago. Amongst the complaints were “violations of the holy values of Islam”. The daily newspaper Bonjan, known for its criticism of the conservative state leadership, is also not allowed to be published at the moment. The judiciary-controlled government has, since April 2000, banned 20 liberal daily papers and around 40 other publications. A total of 15 journalists have been sent to prison.  (Source: afp, 4.5.2002)
 

 
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With Best Regards

The Editorial Team